[holsen]

you can still get the s12 for $129 until february 8th if you repost their s12 ad on facebook for at least 48h, to read details go to shuoer fb page, for an extra $49 you can also get their balanced dac with 3.5 SE and 2.5 bal but they refuse to tell what is the power output of this dac and you'll need to pay an extra $10 to get a 4.4mm to 2.5mm adapter. yesterday i got the s12 for $129 but i did not get their dac as it seems more practical to get a dac with 4.4mm and known power output ( for example the tempotec e44 for $70 )

Thanks for the Heads Up on this. Where can we we find details on this deal for $129 in exchange for a post? How does one gain access to that discount once the post is out? Thanks

 

[DrewVz]

And there it is, YES, planars take all that texture and the living, breathing essence of the drums into your world. The IMR EDPs are pinnacle of that. The Timeless does it so well, and now it's being so well described by you here. Part of me wants to pull the trigger on S12 but I am so happy with my Timeless and have the latest iteration of the EDP in the Queue so I think I'll give them pass but I don't know, I may succumb by the time the sun goes down, I am a sucker for a good planar!

You know my position on the Timeless, so let me give a bit more detail on the S12/Timeless comparison....

I've been listening now for about 2 hours or so with the S12 and Timeless. I'm trying to let the S12 break in a bit more, but honestly I don't hear any difference now compared to right out of the box. I know it's still very early, and I still intend to burn in the S12 tonight/tomorrow for quite a bit before I make any more real judgments.

I have tweaked my Timeless a bit, rolling through several cables and finally landing on what I consider a PERFECT match (8-core graphene + Symbio W tips), so it might be a bit unfair to compare the two directly. I'll set up one of my Timeless tomorrow with a stock cable and plain silicone tips to compare them both side-by-side right out of the box. But for now, let me just say that the Timeless are better tuned and more refined to my ears. Musicality, to me, is all about balance. With the "perfect" match of cable and tips with my Timeless, I hear incredible soundstage and perfectly balanced tonality, which creates a coherent stage and absolute pinpoint imaging. Nothing stands out or detracts from the overall presentation. The cymbals and hi-hats are only accompaniments, they aren't the main players. Same goes for the bass and sub-bass. They ONLY add color and texture, but are not the main melody or harmony. This is important, and is a major differentiator between my Timeless setup and essentially every other IEM I've heard so far. The note attack and decay are so tight as to separate all of the instruments/sounds so that I can hear each sound individually, even if they overlap. It doesn't sound as though I'm listening to headphones/IEMs or even speakers. The entire coherent musical presentation is just being beamed directly into my brain, if that makes sense. So, this is the Timeless for me.

Out of the box, the S12 appears more detailed, but lacks real bass impact and the mids also lack "oomph". The overall presentation just sounds a bit disjointed and thin, not nearly as coherent as my Timeless setup. At the $129 price that I paid for the S12, however, I think it's a really, really good deal and is a great introduction to the "planar sound". Very well done for LETSHUOER. But I will end my praise there, as I don't feel the S12 (out of the box) can compare with the refinement and coherence of the Timeless. And unfortunately, at this time I'm not really motivated to do much cable rolling on the S12 like I did for the Timeless. Tips, sure. I've already done a bit of tip rolling and honestly I find the stock clear silicones with the black cores to be very good indeed. But as I said, the tonality, presentation, and coherence aren't at the same level as Timeless. The treble is too forward, the mids aren't balanced enough, and the bass is too subdued. With the stock setup, I find there is almost no sub-bass to speak of. All together, the S12 sounds very detailed, but in reality isn't balanced enough to be really musical. As I mentioned before, the cymbals and hi-hats are too forward and pierce through the rest of the music, thereby taking center stage, which destroys the overall balance and breaks the coherence of the soundstage and imaging. These treble sounds can be a bit "tizzy" at times with the S12 and once they become "obvious" in the music, it tends to become a distraction, thereby ruining the overall experience.

Sigh, I see that I've babbled on too long again. But I hope some of what I've written will resonate with some folks and help people out. In summary, I think the S12 is a really, really nice piece of hardware and a good low-cost introduction for folks to planar IEMs. But in the end, the Timeless is more refined, balanced, and presents a more coherent sound that is just at a higher level than the S12. I will continue to evaluate and tweak the S12, because I think it may have more to offer. But for now, my opinion stands as stated. Thanks for reading and happy listening!

EDIT: For context, my setup is: Laptop/FLAC/Foobar2000 -> Unison USB -> Gungnir MB -> Burson Soloist 3X -> XLR->4.4mm balanced adapter -> (IEM)

I've tried several amps of varying power output and I've found that there is improvement to be heard even up to the Soloist at ~4-8 Watts into these planar IEMs. More power and better cables definitely affect their performance in a very positive way.

 

[amanieux]

So I have been listening to the Shuoer S12 non stop for a few days. I'm getting some brain burn in and maybe some driver burn in. One thing I find that this IEM does so well is capture the 'atmospherics' of music. Recently I spent time with a couple of KZ's and although they were good they did not add the involvement and atmosphere of music. With the S12 I don't find any unusual peaks that take me away from complete involvement in what I am listening to. Just a simple track like Tom Petty's, Trip to Pirates Cove, beckons total immersion. Probably the Timeless does the same, judging from those who have commented on them. It seems that Planars have found their place in the IEM community for real now, particularly since the S12 and Timeless have brought fantastic bass to us. For me what the S12 does really well is to convey the sound not just of bass impact, but the nuances of drum skins and the sound of leather or whatever the drum skin is made of. That takes me back many moons when I had a very large pair of Tannoy Mercury speakers and a Musical Fidelity amp and a Dual turntable, in a basement room with no furnishings that would dampen the sound. The joy was the nuances and atmospherics of the music. The Shuoer S12 takes me back to those days of highly resolving nuanced bass and utter musical involvement.

what are you powering it from ? i am hesitating between a 80mw and a 240mw dac, i don't know how much power s12 needs to sound good ?

 

[amanieux]

Thanks for the Heads Up on this. Where can we we find details on this deal for $129 in exchange for a post? How does one gain access to that discount once the post is out? Thanks

shuoer facebook page have all the information, they will send you a discount code after 48h so you can purchase at $129 from shuoer website

 

[amanieux]

You know my position on the Timeless, so let me give a bit more detail on the S12/Timeless comparison....

I've been listening now for about 2 hours or so with the S12 and Timeless. I'm trying to let the S12 break in a bit more, but honestly I don't hear any difference now compared to right out of the box. I know it's still very early, and I still intend to burn in the S12 tonight/tomorrow for quite a bit before I make any more real judgments.

I have tweaked my Timeless a bit, rolling through several cables and finally landing on what I consider a PERFECT match (8-core graphene + Symbio W tips), so it might be a bit unfair to compare the two directly. I'll set up one of my Timeless tomorrow with a stock cable and plain silicone tips to compare them both side-by-side right out of the box. But for now, let me just say that the Timeless are better tuned and more refined to my ears. Musicality, to me, is all about balance. With the "perfect" match of cable and tips with my Timeless, I hear incredible soundstage and perfectly balanced tonality, which creates a coherent stage and absolute pinpoint imaging. Nothing stands out or detracts from the overall presentation. The cymbals and hi-hats are only accompaniments, they aren't the main players. Same goes for the bass and sub-bass. They ONLY add color and texture, but are not the main melody or harmony. This is important, and is a major differentiator between my Timeless setup and essentially every other IEM I've heard so far. The note attack and decay are so tight as to separate all of the instruments/sounds so that I can hear each sound individually, even if they overlap. It doesn't sound as though I'm listening to headphones/IEMs or even speakers. The entire coherent musical presentation is just being beamed directly into my brain, if that makes sense. So, this is the Timeless for me.

Out of the box, the S12 appears more detailed, but lacks real bass impact and the mids also lack "oomph". The overall presentation just sounds a bit disjointed and thin, not nearly as coherent as my Timeless setup. At the $129 price that I paid for the S12, however, I think it's a really, really good deal and is a great introduction to the "planar sound". Very well done for LETSHUOER. But I will end my praise there, as I don't feel the S12 (out of the box) can compare with the refinement and coherence of the Timeless. And unfortunately, at this time I'm not really motivated to do much cable rolling on the S12 like I did for the Timeless. Tips, sure. I've already done a bit of tip rolling and honestly I find the stock clear silicones with the black cores to be very good indeed. But as I said, the tonality, presentation, and coherence aren't at the same level as Timeless. The treble is too forward, the mids aren't balanced enough, and the bass is too subdued. With the stock setup, I find there is almost no sub-bass to speak of. All together, the S12 sounds very detailed, but in reality isn't balanced enough to be really musical. As I mentioned before, the cymbals and hi-hats are too forward and pierce through the rest of the music, thereby taking center stage, which destroys the overall balance and breaks the coherence of the soundstage and imaging. These treble sounds can be a bit "tizzy" at times with the S12 and once they become "obvious" in the music, it tends to become a distraction, thereby ruining the overall experience.

Sigh, I see that I've babbled on too long again. But I hope some of what I've written will resonate with some folks and help people out. In summary, I think the S12 is a really, really nice piece of hardware and a good low-cost introduction for folks to planar IEMs. But in the end, the Timeless is more refined, balanced, and presents a more coherent sound that is just at a higher level than the S12. I will continue to evaluate and tweak the S12, because I think it may have more to offer. But for now, my opinion stands as stated. Thanks for reading and happy listening!

have you tried to tape the front vent of s12 to add some bass ?

 

[DrewVz]

have you tried to tape the front vent of s12 to add some bass ?

No, just stock so far. I will tweak more this weekend. Thanks for the tip.

 

[dharmasteve]

what are you powering it from ? i am hesitating between a 80mw and a 240mw dac, i don't know how much power s12 needs to sound good ?

I'm running it from 4.4mm balanced on my HiBy R5, which gives me deep bass. Changing to 3.5mm on the HiBy using a 4.4mm to 3.5mm adapter not so good. I think the S12 needs quite a bit of power to get the best. My Sony Xperia 5ii phone cannot get the best out of the S12 at all

 

[dharmasteve]

No, just stock so far. I will tweak more this weekend. Thanks for the tip.

What source are you using for the S12?

 

[DrewVz]

What source are you using for the S12?

I added the detail of my rig to my original post. Not highest end, but definitely better than most.

 

[amanieux]

I'm running it from 4.4mm balanced on my HiBy R5, which gives me deep bass. Changing to 3.5mm on the HiBy using a 4.4mm to 3.5mm adapter not so good. I think the S12 needs quite a bit of power to get the best. My Sony Xperia 5ii phone cannot get the best out of the S12 at all

if your r5 3.5mm SE output (250mw) it is not as good as 4.4mm (500mw) it really requires a huge amount of power

 

[DrewVz]

Listening to the S12 a bit more now after my Arya and Timeless. The tonality and width/height of the soundstage are actually really good with the S12. But the depth and separation fall behind in performance. And markedly so. But most of the detail, tonality, and stage width are actually really, really well represented with the S12. Again, very well done.

But there is a noticeable drop off in terms of staging, imaging, depth, and separation with the S12 compared to the others. In terms of price at $129, I think it can't be beat. But not at the top of the heap, I'm afraid.

 

[jibberish]

I've had the S12 for a couple of days now, thought I'd give my thoughts, and since I do have the 7HZ Timeless too I'll make a lot of comparisons between the two sets.

The S12 does have very good detail retrieval and does seem to have a bit more sharpness in raw detail retrieval compared to the Timeless. The extra lower/mid treble energy on the S12 is noticeable, and in some cases makes it unforgiving for certain songs, in particular on some songs cymbals and some high pitched keyboards are pushed so far forward that they dominate the mix. Treble sensitive people might find it too much, and that elevated lower/mid treble does not come with upper range airiness/extension. I do really like the mid bass presentation, the sound stage is wide, and along with the detail retrieval I think the set has good separation.

I think when push comes to shove I like the Timeless better though. I do think that the S12 has sharper detail resolution, more mid bass heft without overdoing it (no lower mids bleed), and has a wider soundstage. However I think that extra width is a bit of a detriment, because there really is no depth to the soundstage on the S12, so you get this ping pong super wide stereo effect rather than a coherent image. While the Timeless doesn't have a massive soundstage in any direction, it's more rounded than the S12. The overall image on the Timeless is more natural feeling, and does more justice to the mix of the source material. Like, live albums on the Timeless are presented like how an actual band on stage is positioned, instead of a wall of sound constantly panning hard to the left and right on the S12.

The S12 is a lot cheaper and it's really good. If you want to dip your toes into the leading edge planar market at the best price, or if you are looking for a more v-shaped sound, or if you want something more punchy and resolving for raw detail retrieval, the S12 can be a better choice than the Timeless. If you prefer a softer and/or more coherent sounding presentation I think the Timeless is the better choice. And for Timeless owners, if you are happy with it, don't feel like you need to also purchase the S12 or feel like you missed out by paying more money compared to the S12. They're different sounding IEMs with their own strengths and weaknesses.

 

[holsen]

I've had the S12 for a couple of days now, thought I'd give my thoughts, and since I do have the 7HZ Timeless too I'll make a lot of comparisons between the two sets.

The S12 does have very good detail retrieval and does seem to have a bit more sharpness in raw detail retrieval compared to the Timeless. The extra lower/mid treble energy on the S12 is noticeable, and in some cases makes it unforgiving for certain songs, in particular on some songs cymbals and some high pitched keyboards are pushed so far forward that they dominate the mix. Treble sensitive people might find it too much, and that elevated lower/mid treble does not come with upper range airiness/extension. I do really like the mid bass presentation, the sound stage is wide, and along with the detail retrieval I think the set has good separation.

I think when push comes to shove I like the Timeless better though. I do think that the S12 has sharper detail resolution, more mid bass heft without overdoing it (no lower mids bleed), and has a wider soundstage. However I think that extra width is a bit of a detriment, because there really is no depth to the soundstage on the S12, so you get this ping pong super wide stereo effect rather than a coherent image. While the Timeless doesn't have a massive soundstage in any direction, it's more rounded than the S12. The overall image on the Timeless is more natural feeling, and does more justice to the mix of the source material. Like, live albums on the Timeless are presented like how an actual band on stage is positioned, instead of a wall of sound constantly panning hard to the left and right on the S12.

The S12 is a lot cheaper and it's really good. If you want to dip your toes into the leading edge planar market at the best price, or if you are looking for a more v-shaped sound, or if you want something more punchy and resolving for raw detail retrieval, the S12 can be a better choice than the Timeless. If you prefer a softer and/or more coherent sounding presentation I think the Timeless is the better choice. And for Timeless owners, if you are happy with it, don't feel like you need to also purchase the S12 or feel like you missed out by paying more money compared to the S12. They're different sounding IEMs with their own strengths and weaknesses.

Now that was NOT jibberish! Thanks for you impressions and input.

 

[dharmasteve]

if your r5 3.5mm SE output (250mw) it is not as good as 4.4mm (500mw) it really requires a huge amount of power

Morning here in London now guys. It's not just volume. I find particularly the great qualities of the bass disappear on my Sony Xperia 5ii, 3.5mm and some impact is lost with the HiBy 3.5mm too. It sounds somewhat better on my LG V30 tricking the V30 quad DAC . I will listen on my iFi hip-dac later which has plenty of power and also on an old Samsung S9 plus phone. It does increase its qualities (not quantities) when given more power). Those 'Planar' qualities seem to need juice to show their true character and the 4.4mm balanced of the HiBy R5 does that very well

 

[dharmasteve]

Nice to see a rec for the new breed of Planars. I can't speak for the Timeless but the Shuoer S12 definitely sounds at its best given plenty of juice. Using my iFi Hip-Dac as the source, the 'qualities' of drums, skins and the atmospherics of the music sound great on both 3.5mm and 4.5mm with impedance matching on. The slight warmth of the iFi Hip-Dac suits the S12. I am very impressed by the S12 and clearly the Timeless is really special. I really hope other companies, maybe like TRi, can make an affordable single large driver Planar. Good days indeed.

Check Planar drums on